The Rockstar Chronicles

Together

I was probably the least affected by the revelation that Mr. Kane expected us to perform that night. I was only in a few songs with the boys and I had practiced them so much over the last few weeks, I felt like I could do them in my sleep.

Mom couldn't seem to understand why he moved it up, but I believed it had always been his plan to do just that. He wanted to see the boys when they weren't exactly sure of themselves and judge how they handled their nerves. I had no evidence of this, it was just something I felt.

Because it was what I would have done in Mr. Kane's position.

Rehearsal that afternoon was nerve-wracking, to say the least. Hardyn and Grady were perfect, but Ryder was all over the place and Bridge was still struggling with his usual problems.

"Bridge!" Sarah yelled, gesturing wildly for someone to cut the music. Ryder stopped, confused and embarrassed as Bridge turned down the music and we all stared at him.

Sarah marched up to him, one hand on her hip. "What was that?"

"What?" he asked.

"That!" she pointed to a spot on the floor as if something was there. "You spun left instead of right. This is simple stuff!" she threw her hands up in the air. "I mean, I can't even do complex moves or choreography with you guys!"

Bridge glared at her. "Y'all." He never talked back and especially not on a point like that, but he was so frustrated a side we had never seen before came out.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Can you get it right now or do you need me to go through it step by step?"

Without answering, Bridge went back to his starting position. Nervous energy hung in the air and that take was the worst yet. Bridge nailed the spin, but then promptly forgot the last third of the dance and bumbled along, following the other boys.

I was most worried about Tom, but he remained pretty calm and made it through each dance. I wouldn't say he was excellent, but he was passable and since he was mostly placed in the back alongside Bridge, he did okay.

"I don't know what to do!" Sarah wailed after Ryder messed up for the fourth time. "I really don't! You are supposed to be in the front with Hardyn and Grady and you look even worse than Bridge. And that's saying something."

I winced. Apparently Sarah didn't realize that she was quickly making enemies. I happened to meet Tom's eyes and could see he was clearly thinking the same thing. He looked sick to his stomach and, after glancing at Sarah, walked over to me. She was too busy arguing with Bridge and Ryder while Hardyn and Grady looked on to even notice.

"Lindy. We've got to do something," Tom said.

"I don't know what we can do," I said. "But I think we would have done better not to squeeze this rehearsal in. It seems to be making everyone worse."

Tom nodded in agreement. "I know."

"Tom," I hesitated. "I wanted to tell you. I'm proud of you. You've really handled the pressure well."

Tom blushed, shrugging. "I try, but it is hard. I don't feel like I have anyone on my side here, you know? But Mrs. Crabtree told me that whatever happened, I had to focus on me and my steps. Otherwise I'd mess up. So that's what I did."

"Mrs. Crabtree is great," I said.

The door swung open and Kandee peeked inside. "Time to get ready!" she chirped.

As soon as she spoke, the room fell into deafening silence. It echoed with stillness after the shouting, making it even more apparent that Sarah had been berating the boys before Kandee stopped by.

But Kandee just stared at us with the same cheerful smile plastered on her face, acting as if nothing had happened and, in response, we all pretended the exact same thing.

"We'll be right there," Sarah called back with the same fake smile.

"Don't be late," Kandee warned, shaking one finger in a no-no motion. "Mr. Kane won't like it."

She shut the door and the silence remained. No one knew what to say.

And then Sarah spoke. "I guess it's time." She walked to the corner of her room and hefted her bag onto her shoulder, glancing around the room as if she was saying goodbye. "I would say good luck, but it won't help you now. All of you will be on your way back to your hometowns soon. Congratulations! You blew your chance."

And then she walked out, letting the door bang shut behind her.

**** Hey guys! I'm back! Thank you for your patience. I think you'll like all the extra parts I ended up adding in the end. I'm going to try to update EVERY DAY until we are finished! Also, I'm entering the #Wattys2015 so please remember to vote for THE ROCKSTAR CHRONICLES and share it on Twitter with the hashtag #Wattys2015 .

Also, if things go well, I plan on writing a sequel to this story. Thanks again guys and I hope you like it!!!!